Google's Modular Phone Will Let You Swap Hardware While it Runs

Google's plan to create a cheap and versatile modular smartphone, known as Ara, has garnered interest from more than just the humble consumer. Now, it's been revealed that you'll be able to swap virtually all of its components without ever switching the phone off.

The Ara project director Paul Eremenko recently explained in a talk that the phone will allow you to swap all of its hardware modules (apart from the CPU and display) while it's switched on. Not just that, but you'll be able to do it while processes are running, when you're, say, typing a message or taking a call. That's apparently made possible by a modified version of Android L developed in collaboration with the non-profit Linaro.